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Deadly Encounter

Nashville Glove
1 Mar 1907

Sometime ago there was something said in this paper of the killing of each other by a class of our people in this community, which seems to be periodically epidemic.

Last week the public had dished out to it an account of one young Negro woman cutting to death another over a nasty love affair between them and a white man. Both of these women had come up together from childhood being reared by the same woman who was the mother of one of them. But environments and evil associations tore asunder the bond of friendship which had been formed during the earlier years of their home-life and constant companionship.

This week the public has another sensational killing. This time the parties to the tragedy are two young Negro men.

Wednesday morning, February 27, in the brickyard lodging to W.G. Bush & Co., Sam MABRY was killed by Newton Smith. Smith claims it is said, that the difficulty was brought on by MABRY. He said that during the morning he got into MABRY’s way and the latter cursed him, whereupon he got a brick and throwing it, struck MABRY whom he killed. No claims that he had no intention of committing murder, but to our thinking, that will be much harder to prove than it is to say.

Smith claims that MABRY was the aggressor, but the statements made by those who saw the whole affair are rather damaging and do not boar him out in his claims. He is said to have thrown the brick at MABRY which the latter was upon a ladder.

It is not the purpose of this “write-up” to pass upon the credibility of the statements of those who witnessed the difficulty, that lies wholly within the province of the Criminal Court; but its purpose is to give an account of what is a fact: The death or killing of Sam MABRY by Nowton Smith.

Note: This is not the full article. If you want to know more please contact me.